"THE AND-ONE"1. The nation's top team went down Monday night in Manhattan, Kan. -- is Kansas State really a legit Final Four contender?
Have to admit here, that after the Wildcats upset No. 1 Texas on Monday, all of the talk about Kansas State being a Final Four contender was a bit surprising. There's little doubt that the Wildcats are good — they went into Monday's game ranked No. 9 after all — but the Final Four? Yes. Maybe it's time to start believing in coach Frank Martin's bunch. After further examination of their record, their two losses are against teams in the RPI Top 50, Ole Miss (44) and Missouri (48). That 12-point loss against the Rebels? It came on a neutral court, which generally a plus in the eyes of the selection committee. Another big-time March number that K-State has? A 5-2 record against the RPI Top 50. That will definitely help in terms of seeding. So what does this all have to do with Kansas State's legitimacy for a Final Four shot? Well, it will matter when it comes down to seeding. If the Wildcats can avoid a drop-off and stay strong in the Big 12, they could certainly end up with a top-2 seed. They still have two games against Kansas and a home game against Missouri, but the rest of the Big 12 road is favorable to get the Wildcats in a position to make a serious run at Indy come March.

And 1: One thing we heard and noticed after K-State's upset win -- the anti-court-rushing sect. When did this tradition go out the window?
I'd like to borrow a line from Bart Simpson for this one: "What happened to you, college? You used to be cool." When did the college basketball gods decide that storming the court was not in vogue? Granted, there has to be a code of decorum for when you should storm the court, as ESPN.com's Eamonn Brennan correctly pointed out Tuesday when Indiana students rushed the court after beating Minnesota. That is a bad court storm. But why shouldn't Kansas State students have been able to storm the court? Sure, they're No. 9 in the country, but they just beat the (then-undefeated) No. 1 team in the land and a conference rival. According to the rules of Storming the Floor University, that qualifies as grounds for court-storming. But nowadays in college, storming the court is frowned upon. I remember hearing the PA announcer at the Prudential Center warning Seton Hall students to stay off the floor in the event the Pirates upset then-No. 5 Syracuse earlier this month. Storming the court -- when necessary and just -- is a part of being a student fan. Let's not take all the fun out of college hoops, okay?

VIDEO OF THE WEEK
The hot mid-major team this year has been Cornell and why not? The Big Red nearly took down Kansas at Lawrence earlier this year and have one of the deadliest shooters in the country in Ryan Wittman. But as we all know, Cornell is one of the Ivies. So if you're looking for another reason to pencil this squad into the Sweet 16 in a few weeks, here it is: What other team in the field can boast a gangly 6-8 freshman, Eitan Chemerinski, who can solve the Rubik's Cube in under three minutes on their roster?

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